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Book awards

From: Ruth I. Gordon <DRUTHGO_at_sonic.net>
Date: Tue, 17 Jun 2014 19:22:57 -0700

This is another example of why there are many too many book awards--and especially those from CBC. The great phartolater has expressed his opinion--and probably had nothing about which to bloviate on his evening program. --r




Rush Limbaugh Attacks the Bookstore at Busboys and Poets Posted by Perry Stein on Jun. 17, 2014 at 9:41 am

The independently operated bookstore at the V Street NW location of Busboys and Poets became the target of one of conservative radio hosts Rush Limbaugh's on-air diatribes Monday.

Limbaugh blasted the store, which is operated by the nonprofit Teaching for Change, for not selling his new children's book, Rush Revere and the First Patriots.

Limbaugh's mention of the store was prompted by Teaching for Change Executive Director Deborah Menkart's remarks at a C-SPAN-taped event at Busboys and Poets for an unrelated book, Brazil's Dance with the Devil, which aired Sunday. Menkart gave the opening speech and said 90 percent of children's books that Teaching for Change sells at the bookstore are by or about people of color, specifically noting that the shop does not sell Limbaugh's best-selling children's book. She said the bookstore proves there is a market for these books by or about minority people, but then added that the bookstore isn't breaking even and asked the audience for support through donations.

This is what Limbaugh took issue with on his show Monday.

    ...This is exclusionary, it's racist, it's bigoted, and it's the opposite of everything they claim to be. And it's exactly what they accuse us of being. They claim that they're tolerant. They claim they're open-minded. They claim that they are colorblind and all that. They are the most bigoted, racist people. They exclude here and exclude there and then they don't make any money and they can't figure out why.

    My two books are in the top five on the New York Times best-seller list, and here's a woman at a bookstore who wants to sell books, is begging people to buy 'em, proudly says that two of the books in the top five are not even available at her store, and she wants accolades for that. These people are loony. They simply are dumb. They don't have the slightest idea what they're doing. And they happen to be running the country. And I don't just mean in Washington. People like this are in charge of the public school system. People like this are teaching your kids. People like this are running day care. People like this show up at Obama's fundraisers.

Menkart says that since Limbaugh's segment aired, the nonprofit has received hate calls from fans of the conservative show accusing her of being racist. Menkart tells City Desk that all independent bookstores are struggling, no matter what type of books they are selling. Teaching for Change is accepting donations for its entire organization, which provides resources for schools, parents, and children.

"It shows what we are facing," Menkart says. "That Rush Limbaugh clearly feels threatened and willing to dedicate that much airspace on his show highlights the uphill battle we are facing."

Only 10 percent of children's books currently on the market are by or about minority people, according to Menkart. She says the Teaching for Change staff curates the books sold at its Busboys and Poets shop to reflect the diversity of the surrounding community.

"It really reflects the diversity and we're proud of it," she says. "People over and over come in and say they are so happy that we carry [these books.]

UPDATE: Menkart called to clarify that 90 percent of the children's books the stores sells are by or about people of color and 10 percent of children's books currently on the market are by or about people of color. The post originally stated that these statistics applied to all books.

Photo by Daquella manera via Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0 Busboys and Poets, Rush Limbaugh, teaching for change Blog Widget by LinkWithin Comments

   1.
      ww June 17th, 2014
      11:40 am
      #1

      busboys and poets can do what they like. that's what private business is about, so good for them. but come on, busboys and poets is like "cracker barrel" for the sanctimonious liberal set. people go and eat low quality cookie cutter diner food before/after perusing the adjacent store for some overpriced marxist souvenirs. the irony.
      Flag this comment
   2.
      Michael Stanley June 17th, 2014
      12:07 pm
      #2

      Of course, City Desk claims the only reason Limbaugh went on a diatribe about Busboys and Poets is that they wouldn't sell his book. Next time, take the time to listen all the way through the piece before you scurry off to your laptop to compose your hit piece! Actually, if City Desk would only READ the cut and paste quotation from the show, Limbaugh's point would be crystal clear! At the end of Menkart's video, she actually asks people to donate or buy books because the store isn't making a profit, so the illogical conclusion that she -- and City Desk -- come to is that bigotry or racism is the reason people aren't buying books, instead of piss-poor business management. Right. But that would be too logical and would deprive her and City Desk of their "righteous" indignation.
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   3.
      Jes' sayin June 17th, 2014
      12:18 pm
      #3

      The news here is that Limbaugh is still on the air - somewhere - and at least someone is still listening to him wallow in his political crapulence.

      Sooner or later, he's going to end up like the old Communist Party USA. There were half a dozen members and 500 FBI infiltrators watching them. There are probably more people monitoring Limbaugh to report on what he says than there are people who actually enjoy listening to that old gasbag.
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   4.
      Bob June 17th, 2014
      12:25 pm
      #4

      Sure, they can bring it in...just don't be surprised when it doesn't sell. Fools that bought this book bought it on Amazon: )
      Flag this comment
   5.
      Northwesterneer June 17th, 2014
      12:45 pm
      #5

      Michael, welcome to the City Paper, I see you pulled the article up on Google. Limbaugh is playing the victim, and trying to assign the focus on himself, when a small city book store is struggling like ALL independent bookstores. No one with an idea of what the word demographics means would think that Rush Limbaugh's books would sell in an independent city bookstore- they sell in the exurbs and the Midwest. Reading the quote over and over again can't make a lie true.
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   6.
      Typical DC BS June 17th, 2014
      6:12 pm
      #6

      Uh, Jes'Sayin - Limbaugh is still the top-rated terrestrial radio show in the USA. Like, 14 MILLION listeners each week? And he's been doing it for over 20 years.

      The only gasbags are liberal dimwits who ignore FACTS and bloviate hot air.
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   7.
      Hal9000 June 17th, 2014
      6:25 pm
      #7

      I confess that as a childless homo, I haven't read Rush's book. But there must be something in there that touches the hearts of even the most strident of liberals. A chubby kid grows up to be a second-rate DJ and then parlays that into a job as the angriest talk-show host on the planet. After a string of failed marriages, he becomes addicted to Oxycontin and is investigated by the feds for doctor shopping. Moral of the story? Kids, don't turn out like him.
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   8.
      Northwesterneer June 17th, 2014
      9:18 pm
      #8

      Again, to the person who called themselves "Typical DC BS" - terrestrial talk radio is solely conservative because it's a media ghetto. Rush gets about 13 million listeners per week which is a shadow of what radio was in the 1980s. 13 million is nothing compared to Howard Stern in his heyday. You clearly don't know anything about media to be trumpeting this. Terrestrial radio has died in the era of the internet and its audience no longer matters to anyone.
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Received on Tue 17 Jun 2014 09:24:02 PM CDT